Gruesome re-enactment too much for Briton

Thousands of people watch as Filipino devotees are nailed to crosses during a re-enactment of Jesus Christ's final hours in Cutud village, in San Fernando city about 80 kilometres north of Manila.Photo: AP

April 14, 2006 - 6:50PM

Nine Filipinos were nailed to crosses on Friday in a gory
re-enactment of the death of Jesus Christ, but a British man due to
be crucified with them backed out at the last minute.

Thousands of spectators hoping to see Dominik Diamond cry out as
nails the size of pencils were driven into his hands and feet were
disappointed when the white-robed Glaswegian shook his head and
knelt in prayer instead.

A Belgium nun and a Japanese man have previously been
crucified.

The Japanese man later allowed footage of his ordeal be used in
a pornographic film, much to the horror of organisers.

While some spectators booed Diamond's u-turn, others were more
forgiving.

"I can understand his position," said Bill Duenas, 51. "Those
guys have guts. I think he's got guts, too, but just not
enough."

No one has ever died during the annual spectacle.

The nine men who went before him grimaced as they were nailed
and hoisted up in the steaming Philippine heat.

The gruesome annual ritual in the small village of Cutud, about
80 kilometres north of Manila, attracts tourists from around the
world, some of whom are splattered with blood from lines of men
flagellating themselves.

The penitents, hooded and half naked, flay their back with
bamboo whips en route to the crucifixion site and use paddles
tipped with glass to rip their skin wider.

The country's dominant Catholic Church disapproves of the
crucifixions and whippings as a misrepresentation of the faith.

But participants say they endure the pain to atone for their
sins or to bring blessings on their families.

"I'm doing this for penance. I'm not worried about the pain
because I have faith," Dionigio Dancil, a 30 year old pedicab
driver, told Reuters. "I will go back to work tomorrow with
bandages on my wounds."

Dancil, and the other penitents were nailed to crosses for about
five minutes before being taken away on stretchers.

Started in Cutud in 1962 and copied in other parts of the
country, the crucifixion ritual has become a big tourist draw.

Along the village's dusty main street, hawkers sold ice-cream,
beer and souvenir whips. Local travel agents have started offering
'crucifixion packages' for Philippine and overseas visitors.

"It's quite frightening really. It's not something I would like
to see again. They must be deeply religious people," said Alan
Tatum, an engineer from Suffolk, England.

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Thousands of people watch as Filipino devotees are nailed to crosses during a re-enactment of Jesus Christ's final hours in Cutud village, in San Fernando city about 80 kilometres north of Manila.